"Let no freedom be allowed to novelty, because it is not fitting that any addition should be made to antiquity. Let not the clear faith and belief of our forefathers be fouled by any muddy admixture."
-- Pope Sixtus III

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Race fans, let the couch-jumping begin. The Church of Scientology, the religion for which actor Tom Cruise crusades, will attempt to spread its "Ignite Your Potential" message into auto racing through sponsorship of a race car in one of NASCAR's lowest levels.

US senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) says he believes the United States should begin direct talks with North Korea. Speaking with reporters in Harrisburg, Specter said six-way talks haven’t done any good, so he believes bilateral talks should be the next step.

When Sen. Arlen Specter vowed to do anything to help Sen. Rick Santorum win reelection this year, he probably did not imagine serving as a political piñata.

But that in effect is what is happening as the two Pennsylvania Republicans find themselves on opposite sides of the sharp national debate over illegal immigration.

The divide was illustrated yesterday in dueling forums at opposite ends of the state.

Hours after Specter appeared in Philadelphia to conduct a hearing on a Senate immigration bill he helped author, Santorum staged a town-hall event near Pittsburgh to tout his opposition to the bill as weak-kneed "amnesty" for undocumented workers.

"People suggest the Senate bill does not grant amnesty and that I am mischaracterizing it," said Santorum, who entered Monroeville Volunteer Fire Company No. 4 to chants of "Six more years" from an invitation-only crowd of 150. "If I am, then so are 38 or 36 other senators, as well as 230 House members, numerous editorial pages, and a lot of other folks who read that bill and see it for what it is."

Santorum has been using tough talk on undocumented workers to go on the offensive in his campaign against Democratic State Treasurer Bob Casey Jr., choosing the issue for the first radio and TV ads of the race. In the radio spot, Santorum says Casey has "sided with Ted Kennedy and other liberals" on the legislation.

Kennedy joined Specter at the Senate Judiciary Committee's field hearing yesterday.

"Sen. Santorum is entitled to his views," Specter, the judiciary chairman, said before the hearing. " 'Amnesty' is a buzz word that is used in derogation... . I think we're moving past that."

Besides, the Senate bill required undocumented workers to pay fines, hold jobs and pay back taxes before moving toward legal status, Specter said."Amnesty is when you when you forgive someone for something that they have done," he said. "There is no forgiveness here."

Ukraine's main opposition party joined together with two other groups in parliament Friday, and the new coalition proposed the pro-Russian party's leader Viktor Yanukovych as prime minister.

The realignment in Ukrainian politics means that Yanukovych could end up serving as prime minister to President Viktor Yushchenko, the man he lost out to in what has become known as the Orange Revolution.

The move underscored divisions in the country between the mainly Russian-speaking east and south and the Ukrainian-speaking west, and the country's strategic dilemma between close ties with Russia and integration with the West.

...or are they cowards who refuse the responsibilty freedom demands?

The merger creates a three-party coalition of the Party of Regions along with the Socialist and Communist parties. Coalition leaders said they hold a majority of 233 seats in the 450-member parliament.

After the signing, Yanukovych said the parties had created a "crisis coalition. We have a very difficult situation in the state. We need to create order," he said.

I was intrigued by this new correspondent, kiddies, so I went toGodspeed, Argus and found the following post:

I'm a latecomer to this, I know, but I've been wondering whether climate change is something that I could give my life to. I wonder whether I could make a difference in this field. Is this something that I could study and work to advocate? I am convinced that the world needs good people that are concerned with this issue. Why not me?

You can see the problem here, can't you kiddies? Citizen Argus is not talking about science, he's talking about advocacy, concern, making a difference, and giving one's life to a cause. These are politicalconcepts. They have nothing to do with real science. Pseudo-science, on the other hand, is thoroughly political. Fyodor recommends the following book to help combat this tendency: The True Believer by Eric Hoffer. ("It is a truism that many who join a rising revolutionary movement are attracted by the prospect of sudden and spectacular change in their conditions..." )

Make no mistake. "Global warming" is a movement in search of the masses.

But I often wonder why I consider myself an environmentalist. Why is this something that I actually care about? It is because I am worried about the fate of the human race? Is it a humanitarian issue? Or is it an aesthetic issue?--Do I just want to maintain a beautiful world? Or is it even a spiritual issue?--Do I consider it is great affront to the gift of life for mankind to treat it the world, our home and our provider, with disrespect?

Men who cease to believe in God don't cease believing. They simply find somethingelse in which to believe. (I apologize for the poor paraphrase of...Dostoyevsky?) Again, Argus' words suggest a political yearning, a need to belong to something greater than himself. Human, all too human. (I know that one is Nietzsche's.) Not a hint of science. Not a whiff.

I was extremely moved when I saw An Inconvenient Truth the other day. I've seen it twice now, and both times I came out of the film with a motivated, stimulated mindset. I wanted to act. I wanted to make a difference. I wanted to become involved in a serious way.

To help combat the efforts of totalitarians, left-fascists, leaders, nazis, commies, do-gooders, and others to manipulate other people's natural inclinations for their own nefarious ends, Fyodor recommendsPeople of the Lie: the Hope For Healing Human Evil by M. Scott Peck.

But there are a few observations that must be made about this feeling, since I'm not sure the aftereffect that I felt was genuine. Did I really feel passionate about the cause, or do I just want to be part of the cause? I felt like Al Gore was explaining the ins and outs of a club that I hadn't yet joined, and I felt like I wanted to be part of this club. I felt like he was part of something special, and I came out of the movie wanting to be part of that something, and I wanted to be an important part of it, not just any part of it.

This makes me think Citizen Argus issmarter than the average bear, kiddies. His conscience seems to be prompting healthy skepticism despite his desire to swallow (sorry) The Gorehound's propaganda whole, as Argus' political beliefs (I assume) are compelling him to do. That, kiddies, is the first sign of the scientific method.

I think this is just a specific case of one of my most identifying traits: the desire to be renowned and celebrated, honored and declared a genius. I want to be involved with this issue, but I want to be on the top of the game. I wouldn't actively settle for anything less. While this is a positive thing when looked at from the traditional American mindset, it manifests a difficulty from a more moral/teleological/philosophical point of view. This is a facet of my overwhelming superiority complex (to utilize a hackneyed pop-psych phrase), a part of my character that I know is immutable. And I'm not sure this complex can be overcome, for when I try to overcome it, I end up reinforcing the motion. I try to be humble, I constantly try it. I truly do, but I do so knowingly, and I do so with an eye to improve myself, to try to become a better person. As I feel this humility rising up inside of me, I then begin to feel a sense of self-achievement, and then I feel a sense of superiority, and the cycle is thus iterated, and the humility means nothing.There is nothing wrong with ambition, (A gift from God and, as such, good) as long as a man is a well-rounded gentleman. (For examples of what NOT to do with your ambition, Fyodor recommends the reading of History.) Of course, this battle between will and conscience is life-long and difficult. It is one of the things that makes us humans and not beasts. As is evident from even a cursory look at my blog, I believe Catholicism is the best and safest way to solve this problem. But the important thing is to solve the problem and win the battle in favor of conscience. Why? Because Mao, Stalin, and Hitler (in descending order of number of millions of victims) chose their defective wills instead.

But this is, obviously, a larger issue. Perhaps this isn't even self-reflection, but, since this condition may be universal among us, it's simply reflection on the human condition, philosophical babble, not something to be discussed now.

True Philosophy [Aristotle: tên onomazomenên sophian peri ta procirc;ta aitia kai tas archas hupolambanousi pantes -- "All men consider philosophy as concerned with first causes and principles" (Metaph., I, i)] is not babble. Argus may be confused by the proliferation of philodoxy under which our modern age suffers. Fyodor recommends consideration of the following terms: will, defective will, properly informed conscience, obligation, empiricism, and power.

Could I make my life, make my career, out of an issue such as this one? Do I care about it enough to pursue it uniquely? Will I ever find something that I care about enough to pursue it uniquely?

Fyodor's bottom line advice? Never define yourself with things, kiddies. And always remember that what you do is NOT who you are.

About Me

First of all, the word is SEX, not GENDER. If you are ever tempted to use the word GENDER, don't. The word is SEX! SEX! SEX! SEX! For example: "My sex is male." is correct.
"My gender is male." means nothing. Look it up.
What kind of sick neo-Puritan nonsense is this? Idiot left-fascists, get your blood-soaked paws off the English language. Hence I am choosing "male" under protest.